The Storm Hawks Eight
by kisa-kara-chan
Summary: Kara and Adrian are both Sky Knights that have recently joined the Storm Hawks. When they discover a legendary terra, things may take a turn for the worst for one Storm Hawk. Main Pairing: OCxOC. Story has been changed due to various factors.CharacterDeat
1. Incidents

Okay, well... this is my first Storm Hawks fanfiction, so please go easy on me. I hope you like it, and please comment to let me know how I'm doing on it and or need to expand on anything! I hope you like my OC's Kara and Adrian too! oh, and just to let you know, here are the pairings that I'm planning for this story: AerrowxPiper, KaraxAdrian, Hints of MCxDA.

Storm Hawks does not belong to me. The credit would go to Nerd Corps and Ace Fipke.

* * *

"FINNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!" A young, dark-skinned girl screamed in fury on board the airship known as the Condor.

Immediately, a young, spiky redhead, a black haired girl, and a furry blue creature ran into the room.

"Piper! Are you okay?!" The redhead yelled, looking at Piper with concerned emerald eyes.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Aerrow." she replied.

"What happened?" The raven-haired girl asked, "Did Finn do something again?"

Piper narrowed her tangerine eyes and motioned to the gooey green slime on her desk. "Aerrow, Kara, can I _please_ kill Finn?" She pleaded.

"Come on, Piper. It's not that bad." Aerrow said, trying to find the positive side of things.

The furry blue creature scampered over to Piper's desk, sniffing at the sline, then poking it with a fingerlike claw. Piper accidentally bumped the desk, causing it to fall into the goo.

"Oops. Sorry Radarr." Piper apologized.

Kara pointed one finger at the slime and levitated it off Radarr and Piper's desk, then with a quick snap of her wrist, the goo was gone out of sight, like it just disappeared.

Suddenly, a girly scream echoed throughout the Condor, and Piper grinned at Kara, and she grinned back. They all burst into laughter.

Aerrow, Piper, Kara and Radarr were part of the Storm Hawks squadron, as was Finn and a few others. They lived on the Condor, and Aerrow was the leader of the group. He, Kara, and another member of the Storm Hawks, Adrian, were Sky Knights, priviledged and honoured heroes of their world known as Atmos.

Piper, Kara, Aerrow and Radarr went over to the Hangar Bay, where they saw a huge amount of goo on a blonde teen with blue eyes. A young teen with brown hair and a species known as a Wallop were laughing hard at the blonde teen.

"Kara!" The blonde yelled, "You did this, didn't you?!"

Kara grinned widely at him. "Just a taste of your own medicine, Finn."

"Help me out here, Junko? Adrian?" He asked, looking at the Wallop and the brown-haired teen.

Adrian looked at Kara, locking his dark hazel eyes with her dark brown ones. "He put a slime crystal on Piper's desk, didn't he?" He guessed.

"Yep." she answered.

"You're on your own, Finn." Junko said, grey eyes glittering with amusement.

"You look like a mess." Aerrow commented.

Piper looked at Kara and smiled. "Thanks Kara."

Kara shook her head. "The pleasure's all mine." Then she levitated the goo off of Finn and placed it into an empty bucket.

"Um, guys?" A voice said through the intercom, "You'd better come to the Bridge."

Immediately, all of the Storm Hawks rushed over to the Bridge.

"Stork, what's wrong?" Aerrow demanded from the green carrier pilot at the controls.

"The Condor is running low on fuel crystals, and there's a Cyclonian airship about 3 or 4 leagues in front of us." Stork replied, both panicing and staring at them with beady eyes.

Stork was a Merb, a species known to inhabit Terra Merb. He had jet-black hair, small beady eyes, and was both paranoid and _very_ pessimistic, always talking about 'doom'.

The Cyclonians were people who worked for Master Cyclonis on Cyclonia, who's goal was to take over all of Atmos and destroy anyone who got in her way. Her right hand man was the Dark Ace, feared by many in Atmos, and only Aerrow and Kara have ever defeated him in a Sky Duel. Two other commanders in Cyclonia working for her were Ravess and Snipe. But the Storm Hawks had beaten them many times before, and at the tender age of 14 (except for Stork, who was in his early 20s)!

"Come on, we've been through worse. And Cyclonians aren't a problem much. "Kara stated, trying to be optimistic.

"Easy for you to say. You and Adrian just recently joined us about two weeks ago, so maybe _you've_ been through worse before you joined us! We're all DOOMED!!" Stork complained.

"Stork! Calm down!" Aerrow shouted, trying to calm the pilot down.

"Yeah," Piper agreed, "We'll just steer clear of the Cyclonians and refuel."

"Yeah... uh... Piper?" Finn noted, "They've already spotted us."

"How do you know?" Adrian asked.

Both Finn and Junko pointed out the huge windshields towards dozens of Talon/Cyclonian fighters that were flying towards them.

Radarr squawked, running and climbing onto Aerrow's shoulder.

"Yeah, we're doomed." Stork sighed bluntly.

Kara rolled her eyes. "Here, how about this? I'll transform into a phoenix and lead them away from the Condor, then I'll meet back up with you guys later." She suggested.

"Too dangerous," Aerrow disagreed, "and risky."

"Come on, Aerrow. I'm Atmos' chosen guardian. A few rookie Cyclonians shouldn't be a problem. Don't forget I can shapeshift into any creature I desire _and_ I have my magical powers." Kara argued, then added under her breath, "Powers that I'm still trying to learn how to properly use."

"She has a point there." Poper reinforced, not hearing Kara's last comment.

"It's instant doom if she doesn't." Stork said, one eye twitching occasionally.

"Fine." Aerriw finally agreed, "But be careful, and meet up once you manage to destroy the convey or escape."

She nodded. "Of course," She replied, "I'll track down you guys. But _if_ I don't return or report back within two hours, we'll meet on Terra Vapos."

"Why Vapos?" Junko asked.

"One, we need to make sure everything's alright since you last been there, and two, according to you guys anyways, it's the only place where we know we'll be safe because Finn's their 'Domo'." She explained, "Also, there's a less chance of Cyclonians attacking there because it's supposedly a 'legend' so there's no worry of Talons."

"Good idea!" Piper agreed.

"Chica-cha! I can see all of those hot chicks again." Finn agreed, running a hand through spiky blonde hair.

Piper, Aerrow, Kara, Adrian, Radarr and Stork all rolled their eyes.

"Right..." Piper muttered to herself, pulling out a map from underneath the huge table and scanning it, "There should be a fuel station coming up soon. About 20 or 25 leagues."

Kara closed her eyes and the blue, star-shaped pendant hanging around her neck glowed as Kara transformed into a moderately large phoenix. She flew to the Hangar Bay as Aerrow, Finn, and Adrian followed.

As the hatch opened, Adrian stroked Kara's beak, his face close to hers. "Be careful." He muttered to her.

"I will." The bird replied in Kara's voice.

"Good luck, Kara, "Aerrow said, "Keep in contact if you can."

With a final nod, Kara took off into the air and flew out of the Hangar Bay, diving towards the Cyclonians which dodging their blasts of energy. Her threatening bird cry echoed through the air as the Storm Hawks closed the Hangar Bay doors and flew as fast as they could to the fueling station, hoping that Kara was having much luck in her unfair battle.

* * *

Yeah, that was kinda a suckish chapter. But I think it was pretty good (to a certain degree), well... please comment on it and then I'll update it as soon as I can!


	2. Rescue

Well... here's chapter two. lol. I've actually have it written down and now I just need to get it up. I hope you likey! and please please PLEASE review.

Once again, Storm Hawks does NOT belong to me, but to Nerd Corps and Ace Fipke.

* * *

About half an hour later, the Condor had a new stock of fuel crystals, and were sailing swiftly through the Atmos. The Storm Hawks were waiting patiently for the return of one of their three Sky Knights. As they waited, they began to do some chores.

Suddenly, Stork's voice was on the intercom. "Um... guys? Come to the Bridge. We've got a transmission from Kara." He announced.

Immediately, all the Storm Hawks met on the Bridge.

"Kara? Come in." Aerrow called.

"Hey guys," Kara's voice echoed through the communication box, "I managed to successfully draw away the Cyclonians, but..."

"But what?" Adrian asked worriedly.

"Well... let's just say I got more than a few scratches." She replied.

"Dude, but couldn't you just heal them yourself with your creepy healing magic or something?" Finn questioned.

"Hard to do when you have a sprained wing and you're completely exhausted. It's taking the rest of my strength just to stay airborne." She explained.

"Kara," Aerrow ordered sternly, "land _immediately_. We'll come to get you. Where are you?"

Suddenly, a pained cry echoed through the communicator, and there was a large thump as Kara's body crashed onto hard ground.

"Kara? Kara?!" Junko yelled.

"Stork! Follow these coordinates! Turn to starboard!" Piper shouted, showing Stork a map of where Kara should be.

"Kara, come in!" Aerrow shouted worriedly.

A groan was his response. "Sorry. I'm okay. I just kinda accidentally moved my wing wrong and crashed into some dusty terra. I haven't transformed back yet just in case any Cyclonian spies come around. Please hurry!" She said, then she disconnected.

"Step on it, Stork!" Aerrow yelled.

"We're doomed." Stork muttered under his breath.

5 minutes later, the Condor was right above an uninhabited terra and stopped.

"Adrian, Piper, come with me. We're getting our Skimmers and getting down there. Finn, Junko, stay on the ship with Stork unless I say so otherwise." Aerrow ordered, then he, Radarr, Adrian and Piper ran to the Hangar Bay, where they kept their individual sky rides which looked like motorbikes (or in Piper's case, a scooter).  
Radarr hopped onto Aerrow's Air Skimmer III Ultra as Aerrow himself climbed on, Adrian took his Air Skimmer III, and Piper took her Heliscooter. They took off into skies and transformed their bikes into skimmers.

Once they were near the ground, they transformed their skimmers back and ran towards a fallen red phoenix with a blue necklace on.

"Kara!" Aerrow, Piper, and Adrian shouted simultaneously.

The phoenix raised it's head and looked at them with bright brown eyes. "Hey guys." The phoenix said in Kara's voice, "You found me." Her eyes closed as she transformed back to her human form.

She looked terrible. There were bruises and cuts all over her body, and crystal burns on her arms and legs. There was a long cut that went down her left arm, and both dried and fresh blood stained her blue and red uniform.

Adrian dropped to her side and pulled her onto his lap, then he began to heal some of her serious injuries.

Like Kara, he also had healing powers and had recently become the Storm Hawks' medic when he had joined with Kara. But he was a better healer than her.

Piper and Aerrow also dropped to their knees beside them. Piper's spiky midnight blue hair and Aerrow's tousled mop of red hair tumbled in the light breeze that blew past.

"What happened?" Aerrow demanded.

"Did the Cyclonians hurt you?" Piper added.

Kara nodded weakly, then she gently pat Radarr on the head as he scampered up to her. "The Dark Ace was there, and it seems that all of the Cyclonian weapons have improved, and the Talons that I fought weren't your regular ameteur Talons. So... obviously I lost because I was greatly outnumbered, but all those other factors count too."

"Wait... did you say 'the Dark Ace'? Why would _he_ be in a convey ship?" Aerrow implored.

"I don't know." Kara whispered as her eyelids began to droop closed, "Not quite, anyways," she mumbled.

"Kara!" Piper shouted.

"It's okay," Adrian reassured, "she's resting. Let's take her back to the Condor and get her all bandaged up in the infirmary."

Aerrow and Piper nodded as Adrian lifted Kara into his arms, carrying her bridal-style. He set her behind him on his skimmer and they all rode/flew back onto the Condor.

Adrian carried Kara's sleeping body to the bridge, shocking Finn, Junko, and Stork.

"GERMS! DISEASES!" Stork screamed, looking at the blood, dirt, and grime on Kara's sleeping body, "We're all going to be infected!"

"S-She's not... dead... is she?" Junko asked, tears forming in the corner of his wide grey eyes.

Adrian shook his head in reply. "Just sleeping," he said, "she's been through a lot."

"What _happened_?" Finn asked, seeing the dry blood on Kara's uniform, as well as the multiple cute, bruises, and burns on her body.

"Appearantly this time they sent some _real_ elite Talons with better training and weapons. She was greatly outnumbered." Piper replied.

"And it didn't help her either that the Dark Ace was there." Aerrow added sourly.

"Wait... did you just say 'the Dark Ace'? I mean _the_ Dark Ace?!" Finn exclaimed, "Dude! She's just lucky he didn't kill her!"

Everyone on board glared at him (with the exception of Kara, but if she was awake she would too).

"What?" He asked.

Aerrow shook his head. "Never mind," he said, "Piper, go with Adrian to the infirmary and help him patch Kara up. Adrian, after you guys are done, take Kara to her room and let her rest. Or even let her rest right in the infirmary if necessary."

Adrian and Piper nodded, leaving the Bridge to the infirmary.

About 15 minutes later, after Adrian and Piper finished bandaging Kara up, they returned to the Bridge.

"How is she doing?" Aerrow asked.

"She's stabilized and right now in a healing trance/sleep." Adrian replied.

"We've cleaned up and bandaged her arm, and there seems to be no sign of any infections, so you can CALM DOWN STORK!" Piper added, looking at the Merb for the last bit.

"Good work, you two. Now we've got to figure out why the Dark Ace was on that convey ship, along with those advanced Talon fighters. Just _what_ could be valuable enough to Cyclonis that it needs some heavy guarding?" Aerrow said.

Suddenly, one of the doors slid, and Kara stood, leaning on the doorway, covered in bandages. "What indeed?" She asked.

"Kara! Shouldn't you be resting?!" Junko exclaimed.

Radarr ran up to her and climbed onto her shoulder, and she tickled him under his chin.

Kara shook her head. "Honestly, I'm fine." She reassured, pulling a piece of parchment out of her pocket, "I managed to take this from the Dark Ace. It was sitting aboard his Skimmer."

She slowly and carefully walked over to the rest of the group at the table after Radarr jumped off her shoulder. She placed the parchment on the table.

"It's the prophecy of the Storm Hawks." She declared.

* * *

Well... that's it for now, until I post up the next chapter, that is. But I hope I managed to portray the Storm Hawks' personality correctly. And FINALLY! I finally have a cliffhanger (cause I know the first chapter didn't have one)! well... I hope you've been following along and liking my story!

Please please PLEASE review!


	3. The Prophecy of the Storm Hawks

Okay, well can someone please comment, cause I'm starting to think that this fanfic is really... uninteresting to people. Am I doing something wrong here? -sigh- ah well... Please comment if you're reading this fanfic!

Disclaimer: Storm Hawks doesn't belong to me, but to Ace Fipke.

Claimer: Kara, Adrian, Star, Terra Foresta, Queen Arra, etc... (lol)

* * *

"Wait, what prophecy?" Finn asked.

"We have a prophecy?" Piper implored, amazed.

Kara nodded, looking at the parchment in front of her. Both Aerrow and Adrian stood beside her, observing the mysterious document.

After a moment of silence as the three Sky Knights read it, Junko spoke up.

"W-What does it say?" He questioned worriedly.

"It probably says that we're all going to be infected with mindworms!" Stork exclaimed.

"No, Stork. It doesn't say that," Aerrow told him.

"'Kay, I'll read it to you guys." Kara offered, "It says:"

"Within the heart of the storm,  
Eight chosen hawks are formed,  
One is the prophecized guardian,  
And all are warriors of the sky,  
Four will be two, two will be one,  
Two will betray, two may return,  
If all this happens, may evil be done.

Signed,  
Queen Arra  
Queen of Terra Foresta"

"Terra Foresta? Isn't that place a myth?" Piper asked, puzzled.

"Two of us are going to betray the rest of us?!" Finn exclaimed.

"But I know none of us would betray the others. It just doesn't make sense," Aerrow said, thinking hard.

Stork was glaring menacingly at Kara and Adrian.

"Stork, are you thinking what I think you're thinking?" Adrian asked.

"But what _am_ I thinking, huh? Is it that you and Kara are going to betray us to the Cyclonians?" Stork accused.

"Stork, really..." Aerrow began, "You don't _actually_ think-"

"It's okay, Aerrow," Kara cut off, "I understand Stork's hesitation. After all, we _are_ new. So, Stork? How do you want Adrian and I to prove our loyalty?"

"Eh... good question," The merb admitted.

"Well... you already know our intentions, which is to defeat and rid Atmos of evil forever. Plus, Adrian and I swore our Sky Knight loyalties," She said, "In addition, due to the fact that I am the chosen 'Guardian of the Atmos', it is my sworn duty to protect the citizens of Atmos from all evil."

"She has a point," Junko agreed.

"In the meantime, we should find Terra Foresta and ask the queen about the prophecy," Piper suggested.

"Good idea. But how do we find it?" Aerrow questioned.

Kara and Adrian smiled.

"I've got an idea," Adrian said, nodding to Kara, "Finn, open the top."

As the roof directly over the table opened, in the same size and shape, Kara blew a single high whistle using her mouth and two fingers.

A few moments later, a light blue falcon soared down and perched on Kara's shoulder.

"Guys, this is my friend and pet falcon, Starlight, but Adrian and I call her Star for short. She's a free bird, but she likes to help me out. She's also quite familliar with the terras so she may be able to help us find Terra Foresta."

The falcon dipped her head, showing she understood.

"So... does she know where to go?" Finn asked.

Kara nodded. "Star will guide us there," she replied.

Junko held out his arm to Star and she hopped on. "Aww... nice birdy," he cooed.

The bird cocked her head, then flew onto Piper's shoulder, and nuzzled into her.

"Be careful, Piper," Stork warned, "If she bites you, who knows what sort of diseases you could get. Or could spread to _me_!"

"Don't worry, Stork," Adrian reassured, "Star won't bite you. She'll only bite in either self-defence, or if Kara or I tell her to."

Star flew onto Aerrow's arm, and greeted Radarr, who was on Aerrow's shoulder, by dipping her head in acknowledgement.

"She's so cute," Piper commented.

"Thanks," Kara said, "I found her on Terra Atmosia, just about a few years ago. She was only a baby then. I took care of her until she was old enough to go out on her own."

Aerrow stroked Star's feathers gently. "She seems so tame," he said.

Kara chuckled, "I guess that came with taking care of her for several years."

The bird then flew onto Adrian's shoulder. "You ready?" he asked, and the bird nodded.

The falcon took flight and flew out the way she came in, then flew in front of the Condor.

"Just follow Star," Kara instructed Stork.

"Yeah... to our doom..." he muttered under his breath.

"Next stop: Terra Foresta," Aerrow announced.

* * *

Well... if you're reading this fanfic, I hope you like it! PLEASE PLEASE PLEEEZE R&R!!

And tell me if you have an idea of what the prophecy is, and I'll see if you're right or not! See if you can figure out who's betraying, what does 'four will be two, two will be one" means, and etc.!


	4. Terra Foresta

Well... since I was thinking that I'm writing this fanfiction on paper and I already have like... 3 more chapters ready, I thought I might as well update another one for those who are reading this fanfiction. Once again, please R&R!!

Disclaimer: Storm Hawks doesn't belong to me, but to Ace Fipke (trust me... if it DID belong to me, I would DEFINATELY make Aerrow and Piper get together. lol)

Claimer: Kara, Adrian, Starlight, Terra Foresta, etc...

* * *

About 15 to 20 minutes later, Starlight the falcon led the Storm Hawks to a very green terra.

"Hey, we've been through this part of Atmos many times already. How come we've never seen this very, _very_ green terra before?" Finn asked.

"Piper, you wanna explain it to them?" Kara questioned, writing a letter and not looking up.

"Well, it's been said that Foresta can only be seen when it's queen wishes it to be. But interesting enough, animals can see it," Piper explained.

"What are you writing?" Aerrow asked Kara curiously.

Kara looked up, blinked, then looked at Aerrow. "What? Oh. I'm writing a letter to Queen Arra. The Forestians aren't very friendly to unwelcomed visitors, according to the history books," she replied.

"But if they weren't expecting us, how can we see the terra?" Junko implored.

"Star," Adrian said simply, "Star and Kara have a connection, and with Kara's powers, she can technically see with Star's vision. But because she needs all of us to be able to see it, she's using _more_ of her magical powers to do that, which explains her lack of awareness."

Kara's head snapped up from her writing. "What? Who has a lack of awareness?" she questioned cluelessly.

"See what I mean?" Adrian pointed out.

Suddenly, Kara started to roll up the letter and tie it up with a piece of blue ribbon. "All done!" she exclaimed happily. She blew a high whistle, summoning Star as the Condor stopped.

Star landed on the table in front of Kara.

"Great job, Star. Now can you please do me a favour and give this to Queen Arra on the Terra?" Kara asked the falcon.

Star nodded, and Kara gave her a biscuit before she left.

"So... now we wait until Star returns," Adrian announced.

5 minutes later, Starlight returned with a trinket clasped between her beak. It was a small figurine of a dolphin with a rose in it's mouth and it was attached to a chain.

"We've got permission, "Kara announced, "take the Condor in nice and slow. Land near that castle over there." She pointed to a grey castle within the forest of tropical trees.

Without warning, Kara began to sway, and Adrian grabbed her arms to sturdy her.

"You okay?" He asked worriedly.

"I'm tired from using too much magic, I guess. Maybe also because of the incident earlier with the Cyclonians," she replied.

Aerrow gazed at her with worried emerald eyes. "Kara, you _really_ should get some rest," he told her.

She shook her head. "It's gonna have to wait. I thought this was more important," she retorted.

Adrian kissed her on the forehead. "You're so stubborn," he said.

"Awww..." Finn cooed teasingly, "that's so cute."

Both Adrian and Kara rolled their eyes.

"Well, you gotta admit, that _was_ pretty cute," Piper said.

"It was," Junko agreed, "You guys look so cute together."

"Thanks Junko," Kara said sarcastically, sturdying herself.

Aerrow laughed, "Don't worry about it, Kara. They're only joking."

"We're approaching our destination!" Stork exclaimed.

"Okay, prepare for landing, Storm Hawks!" Aerrow ordered.

"We taking the Skimmers?" Finn asked.

The redhead nodded. "Stork, are you taking the Storkmobile? Or riding with Finn?"

Stork twitched. "This is probably a _really_ bad idea, but I'm trusting that there are no booby traps, so I'll ride with Finn," he answered.

After the Condor landed near the town surrounding the castle, Aerrow ordered the Storm Hawks to get on their rides, and Kara placed the prophecy into her pocket. She slipped the figurine of the dolphin into her bag that she had placed on her Air Skimmer III Extreme, and got on. Starlight hovered in front of her.

"Oh, you wanna come along and explore Foresta?" Kara questioned and Star screeched joyfully. Kara nodded in agreement.

"Okay, are we all set?" Aerrow asked, looking at his squadron.

They all nodded.

"Then let's ride. Queen Arra should be expecting us at her castle," he said, revving his skimmer and leading the squadron out of the Condor and to the huge castle.

When the Storm Hawks arrived at the main gate, they were stopped by fierce-looking guards wielding energy staffs.

"Dismount your rides," A guard ordered.

They all did as they were told and Kara used her magic so that a long, white cloak covered her uniform, a leaf-shaped clip connecting two sides of the fabric to create a hood, which had been drawn up.

The guards gasped and bowed in respect, shocking the rest of the Storm Hawks.

"Milady Kara! We humbly apologize for our rudeness. We thought that-" a guard said quickly.

"Queen Arra _did_ alert you that we were arriving, did she not?" Kara implored, interrupting the guard's thoughts with the ring of authority in her voice.

"Y-yes, she did, "another guard admitted, "Please forgive us."

She shook her head. "There is nothing to forgive. You are only doing your duties," she said, "Now, if you'll excuse us, I believe we have an audience with Queen Arra."

The guards moved aside, heads still bowed. "Thank you, Milady." they all said simultaneously.

As Kara led the Storm Hawks through the gate, they stared at the castle in amazement.

"Dude, what just _happened_ back there?!" Finn exclaimed.

"Yeah," Aerrow agreed, looking at Kara, "you wanna explain this one to us?"

"I told Queen Arra in the letter that we were coming, and that I would be dressed in a plain white cloak, so that none would dare challenge myself or any of you. The cloak is to signify that I am the Guardian of the Atmos, and so I would not be questioned by any suspicious of me or those with me," Kara explained.

"Amazing," Junko commented.

"That was close," Stork said, "I thought we were doomed back there."

Kara chuckled, "As long as you're with me, no harm will come to you by the Forestians."

"Kara, have you been here before?" Adrian asked suspiciously.

"Not that I can remember, no," she replied truthfully, "Why?"

"It seems like you're so... familiar with this place," Aerrow told her.

"And you act like you know that there are no booby traps and that we're totally _NOT_ doomed!" Stork exclaimed.

"I don't know why, but I feel... comfortable here, like I do with the Storm Hawks," Kara commented, smiling warmly while drawing down her hood.

"I wonder why," Piper said in wonder, thinking out loud.

Radarr squawked, looking ahead at the woman approaching them.

Queen Arra wore a long, simple green-blue dress. The dress had a square-neck opening, and white lace on the ends. It really complimented her slim and tall form. Her blue-green eyes sparkled with joy, and her long, dirty-golden hair shone dimly in the light. A small, golden tiara was sitting on her head, proving she was indeed the queen.

"Welcome, Storm Hawks," she greeted in a sing-song voice.

Every single Storm Hawk bowed to her in respect.

"Come now, stand up. There is no need to bow among friends," Queen Arra said.

"Thank you, Your Highness," Aerrow replied formally.

"There is no need to thank me," Arra said, "And you have brought the legendary guardian with you!" She looked at Kara. "It's been a while, hasn't it, Kara?"

"Your Majesty?" Kara asked, puzzled.

The queen looked thoughtful. "Well, I suppose you wouldn't remember, after all, I _did_ order that those few memories be taken," she stated.

They were all shocked. Queen Arra has met Kara before? And she had ordered some memories to be taken away? Just _what_ was going on here?!

* * *

Please R&R!!


	5. Truth Behind A Tale

**Author's Note**: well... I hope you all enjoy the story so far! Not much else to say. Please R&R!!

* * *

"You've met me before?" Kara questioned the queen, confused.

Queen Arra nodded. "Come, I will explain to you all in the Audience Chamber," she invited, turning towards a doorway, where the guards opened the doors for her and the Storm Hawks.

They all followed her in and sat down at the rectangular table.

"So… you've met Kara before, Your Highness?" Piper asked curiously.

Queen Arra nodded once more. "About three years ago. She was a mature eleven-year-old. At that time, I knew nothing regarding her being the chosen Guardian of the Atmos. Neither did she. After six months, I gave the order of taking the few memories of Terra Foresta, and leaving her on Terra Atmosia, where I knew she would be in good hands," she explained.

Kara stared into the wood of the table. "All I remember was waking up on Atmosia, and it was raining. My head hurt and suddenly this necklace appeared around my neck and it was glowing. I felt strength and warmth rush into me, and very soon I was discovered by a nice man named Alex. He took me to see the Sky Knights Council for help, and I was told I was Atmos' chosen guardian. I was tested by them by taking the Sky Knight's Acceptance Exam, and I passed. I had no clue how I did, but I just did. But, because of my age, they prevented me from being a Sky Knight until I was at least fourteen. So that's what I remember," she explained.

"During her six months here, she put herself through vigorous training because her dream was to become a Sky Knight," Arra said, " I swore to myself that I would return your memories to you the next time you returned to Foresta," she told Kara.

"You can do that?!" Finn gasped in wonder.

The queen snapped her slender fingers once, and a small hole next to her appeared, and a glass case was raised up. Inside the glass case was a shimmering ball of white light.

"What _is_ that?!" Junko exclaimed.

"Flying mindworms!" Stork screamed.

"No!" Aerrow shouted, "I-It's… It's…"

"Kara's memories," Piper finished.

"But-But how?" Adrian questioned.

The queen smiled. "Using a memory crystal, which can hold the memories of a person. Only good for one use, and we _had_ to do it."

"B-But why?" Kara choked.

"We needed to protect you from both the Cyclonians and Terra Vapos. _Before_ I made an alliance with King Agar," the queen replied.

"You know King Agar?!" Finn gasped, "Then have you heard-"

"Yes," Arra interrupted, "I have heard of you, Finn. You are the great Domo of Vapos, as well as Foresta."

"Finn's the Domo of Foresta too?" Piper gasped.

"Yes, but fortunately, he doesn't have to do anything too dangerous, like getting eaten. He only needs to be a hero to the people," she explained, "However, Kara on the other hand, needs to perform a sacred ritual. But she'll need her memories back."

Arra removed the glass casing around the memory crystal and shot a bolt of energy at Kara, which hit her directly in the chest, knocking her out cold.

"Kara!" Adrian gasped, catching the falling girl in his arms.

"Do not be alarmed. She needs to be unconscious while her mind fills in the blank spaces of her memory," the queen told them, "She will awake when its time."

The Storm Hawks introduced themselves to her, and she called a servant/nursemaid to come in and take Kara to her room, and then she invited the rest of the squadron for dinner.

During dinner, the Storm Hawks decided now was the right time to ask about the prophecy.

"So… we– well , Kara, actually, found the prophecy you wrote about us in the clutches of a Cyclonian Commander. We read it, and found your name signed at the bottom," Aerrow explained," We all want to know what it means."

"I'm sorry, Aerrow, but I am not allowed to tell you, or _anyone_ what that means," Queen Arra said sincerely, sipping lightly at her soup.

"Why not?" Finn asked.

"As a prophecy teller, I have sworn an oath not to reveal anything about a prophecy until it happens. Even if I wanted to tell you, I cannot. The oath I swore was magical, and so I would be prevented from telling anyone by the magic," she explained sadly.

"Is there anything you _can_ tell us?" Junko asked.

The queen looked at them with dim, sad eyes. "I'm afraid not."

"So... how did you meet Kara?" Adrian questioned curiously.

"She was on her old Heliscooter, being chased by the Cyclonians and the Dark Ace. She was badly injured, and I ordered my guards to go ward them off. They did, luckily, and Kara crashed onto the terra. We soon found her and took care of her since that day," Queen Arra explained, "But no one expected that the reason that they were chasing her was because she was the Guardian of Atmos."

"But... how would Cyclonis and the Dark Ace know she was the one?" Piper implored.

Arra shrugged. "I don't know," she said.

Aerrow stood up. "Thank you for the meal. We'll go back to the Condor and-" he began.

"No!" the queen exclaimed, "You must stay the night. I insist! As both guests and Kara's friends, you must stay."

He bowed his head. "Thank you very much for your kindness," he said.

Arra smiled. "Now, my maids will show you to your rooms, and they will tend to you when you call."

Some maids led the Storm Hawks down a series of corridors until they arrived in one particular corridor with a bunch of doors.

"The first one on the far right is Lady Kara's, and you may choose any room you like. Now, I bid you all goodnight," a maid said, bowing before leaving.

"Okay… well… I guess we'll see each other in the morning," Piper announced.

"If we even _survive_ the night…" Stork muttered.

Aerrow chose the room across from Kara's, Piper chose the room beside his, Junko chose the next one, Adrian chose the one beside Kara's, Finn chose the one beside his, and Stork chose the one beside Junko and across Finn… the one closest to the exit.

They washed up, and got into their beds, some sleeping, some aren't.

Around midnight, Kara's eyes opened, and she found herself in the old room she used to live in three years ago.

"Some things don't change," she mumbled, a hand on her forehead, "Ugh… my head. I guess that's what happens when you get memories returned to you after three years without them."

Suddenly, the door granting access into her room slightly opened, and Radarr scampered in, closing the door after him.

"Hey, Radarr," she greeted, "why are you still up so late?"

Radarr whimpered slightly, crawling onto her bed.

"Couldn't sleep, huh?" she asked, scratching the furry little creature under the chin, "Do you want to stay here with me? I'm sure Aerrow won't mind."

Radarr nodded, then curled up on the soft blue blankets, closing his big yellow eyes.

"Good night, Radarr," Kara whispered, closing her own eyes as sleep overtook her.

* * *

Well... I hope you liked it! and I hope I didn't make the Storm Hawks (not including Kara and Adrian) too OCC-ish... Once again, please R&R and I'll update as soon as I can.


	6. Preparation for the Ritual

Well... here's the next chapter of the Storm Hawks Eight. I hope you likey! Please R&R!

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The next morning, Aerrow's emerald eyes fluttered open.

"Wow," he mumbled, sitting up and rubbing the back of his head, "that was a good night's sleep, right Radarr?"

He looked around after noticing that there was no reply from his furry blue co-pilot.

"Radarr?" he called, "Where are you?"

He climbed out of bed, dressed in a clean pair of his uniforms and looked all around the room. He got himself ready and came out of his room, and soon, one-by-one, the others all got out of their rooms too, except for Kara.

"Morning, everyone," Aerrow greeted.

The rest of the team said 'good morning' and had a quick conversation on how they slept last night, and Kara walked out of her room, not dressed in her uniform, but in a long-sleeved, plain dark blue dress that complimented her curves. It had a V-shape neckline, revealing the light blue, star-shaped pendant hanging around her neck, and the dress just reached her ankles. She was wearing a pair of light blue slippers that made her footsteps silent.

Adrian, Aerrow, and Finn all gave her long, low whistles, making her flush in embarrassment.

"Very nice," Piper stated, grinning.

"It's cute," Junko added, smiling.

Kara smiled back. "Thanks guys. The maids came to my door early this morning and insisted I wore this," she explained.

Without warning, Radarr came out of Kara's room.

"There you are, Radarr! I was wondering where you've been," Aerrow said, "I'm guessing you stayed in Kara's room for the rest of last night."

Radarr nodded, running up to him.

"You look beautiful," Adrian complimented to Kara.

"Thanks," she replied back, blushing slightly.

Finn grinned at her half-jokingly, "Hey. If you ever are in need of a date, I'm here for ya."

Kara laughed, "Thanks Finn. I'll keep that in mind."

Adrian walked over so he stood in front of her and gave a cheezy bow, then offered his arm out to her. "May I be given the high honour of escorting you, Milady?" he asked in both a teasing tone and a noble accent.

Kara stifled a chuckle, and slipped her arm through his. "Why, yes you may, kind sir," she replied in the same sort of tone and accent.

The rest of the Storm Hawks laughed.

"So, are we going to go to the Dining Hall before Queen Arra has our tails for being late?" Adrian asked with his normal voice, his arm still slipped through Kara's.

"Let's get going," Aerrow said enthusiastically, offering his arm to Piper, which she took with a laugh.

"The Love Bug will infect us all!" Stork exclaimed, following behind them at the end, "I should get us all repellents before it's too late…"

"Awww…" Finn muttered to himself, "Why don't _I_ get any of the girls?"

"Come on, Finn!" Junko stated happily, "Let's go!"

"I tell you… Mindworms," Stork said, his eyes flashing around warily, though no one heard him.

When they arrived in the Dining Hall, they were warmly greeted by Queen Arra.

"Good morning, Storm Hawks!" she exclaimed enthusiastically.

"Good morning, Your Majesty," they replied curtly.

Arra's eyes flickered over Kara's form. "You look lovely!" she exclaimed, clapping her hands in delight.

"T-Thanks," Kara stammered, her face beginning to turn as red as Aerrow's hair.

A chuckle escaped from Arra, and then she addressed them all.

"Now, come join me for breakfast," she insisted, leading them over to the large wooden table that had tons and tons of food on it, such as fruits, pancakes, waffles, eggs, jam, syrup, sausages, sandcakes, and other breakfast foods.

While Finn and Junko were busy stuffing themselves with food, Aerrow, Piper, Kara, and Adrian were sitting with the queen, chatting while they ate. Stork excused himself from breakfast, claiming to be busy fixing up something.

"So… what's this 'sacred ritual' I have to perform?" Kara questioned.

"It's a performance of a sacred dance on the Lake of Purity. It has been told that one chosen person will successfully perform it. Many have tried, all have failed," the queen explained.

"Did you say, '_on_ the lake'?" Aerrow questioned.

Arra nodded.

"But, how is that possible?" Piper asked, confused, "The only way you could walk on water is by using a floater crystal or something similar."

"Not necessarily," Arra disagreed, "that is why this is a sort of test in ways too. Only the _true_ chosen one can walk on the Lake of Purity without the use on any crystals."

"But why me?" Kara implored.

"Two reasons: One; out of all the Storm Hawks, only you know the sacred dance, because you learned it when you were younger, and two; you're the Guardian of Atmos, so we're hoping you might be the one," Arra explained.

"Pardon me, Your Highness," Adrian addressed politely, "but what is the meaning of the ritual? What is it suppose to do?"

Queen Arra's eyes dimmed. "To release the souls trapped in the lake, and awaken the spiritual guardians of Foresta, who were put into a deep sleep by an evil Cyclonian sorcerer, who, sadly, escaped and fled back to Cyclonia," she replied.

"Hey, Arra?" Kara asked suddenly and informally, "Is Chase still on Foresta? Does he know we're here?"

Arra nodded. "Lord Chase is currently setting a perimeter around the Lake of Purity and gathering people to watch. He knows you're here, and has much faith in you. He'll be joining us for the ritual."

"Who's this 'Lord Chase'?" Adrian asked, a tint of jealousy in his voice.

"He's a friend of mine. We were introduced when I crashed here three years ago. He helped me train to become a Sky Knight," Kara replied, "He's a few years older than me, and boy, was he one _harsh_ instructor. Probably lost some of his edge over the years though."

Aerrow smiled. "I see your memory of this place has come back to you," he teased.

Piper giggled, "I wonder if he'd be able to beat Adrian, Kara and Aerrow."

"You've no _idea_ how many bruises I've received from that man," Kara groaned, "It's _far_ too easy to underestimate him. Trust me, I've made that mistake before."

"But then again, your skills must have improved from then," Adrian said.

She shrugged. "I suggest that Aerrow goes against Chase. He's better at Sky Fu than me."

"Not true," Aerrow disagreed," If it's a Sky Fu battle, I vote Piper. She _is_ the master out of all of us."

Piper flushed in embarrassment, but all the Storm Hawks knew it was true.

"I agree," Adrian chimed, "But if it's a Sky Knight duel, it's Aerrow all the way."

"Obviously," Kara agreed, "Chase probably knows most of my moves."

Queen Arra laughed. "Oh, I can see that all of you are _very_ good friends!"

Kara raised an eyebrow. "Do I suspect a double meaning in those words?" she accused suspiciously.

Arra smiled. "All in good time," she replied simply.

She sighed, "Very well then."

"So… when is the ritual?" Piper questioned.

"In about 7 hours," Arra answered, "Kara will be dressed in a special outfit, and will need a special staff, but those are all ready for her."

"Wait…" Kara paused in shock," _that_ outfit?!"

The queen nodded. "You have to wear it," she informed her.

"No! I really, _really_ don't like that outfit! It looked so bad on me before!" She protested.

"That was before, and this is _now_. You can't have looked _that_ bad," Aerrow countered.

"Heck, yes I _can_! Well, I did," she replied, "but still…"

"Besides," Adrian interrupted, "you'd probably look great!"

Kara rolled her eyes. "Can we _please_ talk about a subject that _doesn't_ involve me?" she pleaded.

The had all finished eating now at this point.

Arra looked at Aerrow. "So, how did the present Storm Hawks come to be?"

"Well…" Aerrow began, "I'm the last descendant of the original Storm Hawks, and so I was given their mission to defend and protect Atmos from evil, beasts, rogues, and Cyclonians. Piper, Finn, Junko, Stork, Radarr and I soon came together and we became the Storm Hawks. We met Adrian and Kara on Terra Neon just a few weeks ago, after they helped save Stork, and we asked them to join us, which they accepted."

"Obviously," Piper added, rolling her eyes at Aerrow, "Or else none of us would even _be_ here on Terra Foresta."

He laughed, "Right!"

Adrian, Kara, Piper and Arra joined in the laughter.

Suddenly, Finn, Junko, and Stork came up to them.

"Um… mindworms…" Stork muttered.

"So… now what are we going to do?" Finn questioned.

"Hey, can we take a look at your training place or training room?" Aerrow asked Kara.

She gave an easy shrug. "Sure, if you want to."

"Is it still there, over all those years?" Junko asked, eyes wide.

Finn scoffed and rolled his blue eyes. "Dude, good buddy, it's only _been_ three years. Of _course_ its still there." Then he looked at both Kara and Queen Arra. "Right?"

Arra chuckled, "Of course. Kara, if you don't mind, do you want to take them to your training room? I have some matters to attend to."

She shook her head. "I don't mind at all. I'll see you at the Lake of Purity late then," she said, walking off with the rest of the Storm Hawks.

The queen dipped her head once, then left in the opposite direction. "Of course. Until then."

* * *

Well... that's it for now (the chapter, I mean, not the story, d'oh), and I'll update as soon as possible. Just to tell the readers out there, I already have some of the story written on paper, and I just type it up online. So I can actually update sooner than I usually do, but you have to review and tell me what you think to do that! lol. And for those of you who DO review, thank you so much (in advance), and I really appreciate the reviews!!!!!!!!


	7. Tour Around the Castle

**Authoress' Note: Okay, so here's the next chapter. I hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer: Storm Hawks belongs to Nerd Corps and Ace Fipke.**

**Claimer: Idea, Kara, Adrian, Forestians (Queen Arra, Chase, Lorali, etc...), Terra Foresta, Star, and pretty much everyone and thing that is NOT in the Storm Hawks series. lol.**

**Please R&R!**

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As the Storm Hawks walked through the flower-filled courtyard, as well as the symbol-engraved corridors, not to mention the huge, grey stone-bricked walls of the castle, Stork was acting more paranoid and cautious than usual.

"Um… are you positively _sure_ that there are no infectious diseases and mindworms here?" he asked Kara nervously.

"I'm _absolutely_ positive," Kara reassured, "and for your satisfaction, I've ordered some floral-scented 'mind-worm' repellents for the Condor. They'll be in your room for your inspection."

"You can do that?" Finn inquired with a puzzled look on his face.

"Yep! Since I've lived here before and that I'm the 'legendary' Guardian of the Atmos, the people here kind of treat me like royalty," she explained.

Aerrow had a puzzled look on his face now. "I'm still kinda new with this 'Guardian-of-the-Atmos' stuff. Is there anything you know that could kinda clear this up for me?" he requested.

"Yeah, how does it work?" Junko agreed.

Piper looked thoughtful. "Well, according from what I heard and read, the guardian is chosen by the Oracle, and is recognized from the blue star pendant on Kara's necklace. The necklace is called the 'Spirit Star', because it has been said that it holds the power and strength of the pure spirit within the guardian herself," she explained.

"You flatter me," Kara commented, "thanks. But what Piper says is true. The day that the Forestians placed me in the people of Atmosia's care, and that evening when the 'Spirit Star' first appeared to me, was when my duty as the Guardian of Atmos first began."

Adrian placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "And the day afterwards was the very first day I met you and have been with you since," he said, smiling.

Radarr climbed up onto her opposite shoulder and she tickled him under the chin. "I know," she replied softly, "and I've been grateful to you ever since."

Suddenly, she stopped in front of a huge, double wooden door and used her magic to push it open.

Inside was a series of obstacle courses, training dummies, punching bags, and a _whole_ bunch of other training equipment. It looked absolutely _vicious_.

Finn gulped. "It looks a lot more like a torture chamber than a training room," he commented nervously.

"You guys want to try some stuff out?" Kara offered, a tiny hint of teasing in her voice.

"Um… no thanks," Junko replied gruffly.

Radarr hurriedly left Kara's shoulder and returned to Aerrow's.

Aerrow gave an uneasy chuckle. "M-maybe some other time," he told her.

She laughed, then closed the door. "I thought you might say that," she joked.

"Did you _actually_ used to train in there?" Piper questioned.

"I tell you…" Stork murmured, "it's the mindworms."

"Believe it or not, I actually _did_. Chase trained with me in there," she replied, "Now, Piper, I think you in particular would _especially_ like our next stop. It's the Crystal Lab. If you ask Lorali, I believe she'll let you take a few. With my powers and certain crystal powders, I have created a Resurrection Crystal that is currently sitting aboard the Condor in my room. I'm not sure whether I've told you yet or not. Well, even though I've already made it, I've still yet to figure out the crystal matrix of the Resurrection Crystal."

Piper's eyes widened. "And you didn't tell me?!" she demanded.

"Sorry. I thought I needed to be sure whether it worked or not before I'd show you," she defended.

They arrived at a door with a few dormant crystals placed in them, and pushed it opened. Everyone (except for Kara) gaped in astonishment.

A young woman with light cropped chestnut hair and dressed in a simple blue tunic and red pants looked up from her crystal, and her shimmering golden eyes met Kara's. Immediately she arose from her stool, hurriedly rushed so that she stood in front of Kara and bowed deeply.

"M-Milady Kara! What brings you here?" she asked nervously.

"Ah, you're the same as usual, aren't you Lorali? I suppose you've added a few_ hundred_ more crystals to your collection," Kara replied.

In front of them was a _huge_ room with hundred of cabinets of crystals, all alphabetized. The cabinets were wooden, and they seemed to fit as the wall. Several crystal-testing and analyzing machines sat on various metal desks, and Piper could not help but stare at the dozens of dozens of crystal cabinets surrounding her.

"Amazing," she breathed.

Lorali's face lit up with joy and pride. "You like it? Lady Kara has been helping me with the collection, before she was sent off to Atmosia, anyway," she stated.

Kara drew a tiny bottle from her sleeve and tossed it to Lorali.

"Are those- Are those shards of the Aurora Stone?" Finn asked.

"But- but that's impossible," Aerrow said, confused, "I destroyed the Aurora Stone myself in order to prevent Cyclonis from taking over Atmos."

"I found these, well, in the Wastelands after you had destroyed it," Kara explained, "I swear, I only just _happened_ to find them while 'exploring' the Wastelands."

"You never cease to amaze me, Milady," Lorali sighed, emptying the vial and placing the shards on the scanner, "So, what do you need to know?"

She crossed her arms. "I need to know whether I am fully able to restore the Aurora Stone to its original state with only shards of it," she announced, shocking everyone.

"_Restore_ the Aurora Stone?!" Adrian exclaimed.

"The Aurora Stone?!" Junko shrieked.

"Are you crazy?!" Finn yelled.

"Is it even possible?!" Piper gasped.

Only Aerrow, Stork, and Lorali didn't say anything, but were instead gaping at her.

Kara closed her eyes and her face was set into deep thought. "It's possible to restore it. Afterwards I can return it to it's rightful place on Terra Atmosia," she explained.

"But Kara, it's the _Aurora Stone_! As in, _the_ Aurora Stone! It's said to be the most powerful crystal in all of Atmos!" Aerrow protested.

She looked at him. "Hey, well everyone was scared of the Dark Ace. As in, _the_ Dark Ace! And look, you and I have both beaten him before," she countered sarcastically.

Lorali looked up at Kara from the scanner. "Um… Milady? It's possible for you to restore the Aurora Stone, but there's just one catch," she said.

"What is it?" Kara demanded.

"You won't be able to use your powers for a full 18 hours. Milady, if you restore the crystal right now, your powers won't work until 10 AM tomorrow," Lorali explained.

She dipped her head. "Very well then. I'll do it now. It'll save me the trouble later. Keep it in the Crystal Safe until I return for it sometime before I head off to Atmosia," she ordered, walking over and picking up the shards, "and you can call me Kara."

"Yes, Milady," Lorali said respectfully, "Er- I mean, Kara."

Kara smiled, then she closed her eyes as she held out the shards in front of her with both hands. Her necklace began to glow, and a soft blue aura formed around her. Ever so slowly, the shards began to piece together and were perfectly welded by Kara's powers. From there on, the crystal began to form, and after ten whole minutes, the crystal was finally restored.

The blue aura around Kara faded as she crumpled to the floor, the brand-new Aurora Stone rolling out of her hands.

"Kara!" her friends exclaimed as they ran over to her.

Adrian slipped his arms under her head and legs and sat her upright on his lap, her head against his shoulder.

"Kara? Wake up," he whispered.

"Aerrow, what's wrong with her?!" Piper asked her leader worriedly.

Kara stirred gently and her eyes gently fluttered open. "W-What happened?" she mumbled, a hand at her forehead. Then her eyes fully opened and she blinked. "Um… why am I on the ground? And more specifically…" she looked up at Adrian, "why am I on your lap?"

He blushed. "You collapsed after you finished restoring the Aurora Stone," he explained, kissing her forehead lightly.

"Are you okay, Kara?" Junko questioned worriedly.

She nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine."

Finn sighed with relief. "You gave us quite a scare there, dude," he said.

Lorali picked the Aurora Stone off the floor and looked at it closely. "Astounding! It looks like it was never broken in the first place!" she gasped as Kara began to stand up, supported by both Adrian and Aerrow.

"Okay, now I won't be able to use my powers for the next 18 hours," Kara announced, "but that shouldn't be a problem if I really _am_ the chosen one. And if not, I know how to swim."

"If not, we'll save you," Finn said, grinning.

"Let's just hope Cyclonis won't get her hands on _this_," Piper stated, picking up the Aurora Stone from Lorali's outstretched hands, "or else there's not going to be anyone to save _us_."

"Uh… right," Finn mumbled.

"That suddenly reminds me of the day we first became the Storm Hawks and the day I first encountered the Dark Ace," Aerrow said, looking at Kara, "you saved my life."

"I've a feeling there's a story behind this one," Lorali said, grinning.

"It all started on Terra Atmosia…" Piper began.

**Okay, well... the next chapter is pretty much only just a flashback, 'cept for near the end of that chapter. lol. Hope you liked it so far! Please R&R!**

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	8. Memories

**Okay, just to let those of you know, this is more of a flashback kinda chapter. Well... for the first bit, anyways. So episodes 1-2 Age of Heroes don't belong to me. **

**Disclaimer: Storm Hawks, Ep 1-2 Age of Heroes**

**Claimer: OCs (Kara, Adrian, Star, Arra, etc...), Terra Foresta, and idea.**

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____

One month and 9 days before

"Even though Aerrow passed the Sky Knight trials, we still need to register with the Sky Knight Council in order to become an official Sky Knight squadron," Piper was saying as the soon-to-be Storm Hawks were on Terra Atmosia, "It's just a formality."

_The Sky Knight Council declined when they realized they were only fourteen._

_Atmosia was betrayed by their Sky Knight, and the Aurora Stone was almost stolen. But if it wasn't for Aerrow, the Aurora Stone would have been stolen._

_After Carver, the former leader of the Red Eagles of Atmosia, failed to steal the Aurora Stone, Cyclonis sent the Dark Ace to steal it._

_The Storm Hawks and the Cyclonians went into a battle right over Atmosia, and the Storm Hawks lost. Aerrow had lost to the Dark Ace and was now on the ground, the Dark Ace standing over him, his energy blade glowing a bloody red hue._

_"You lose, Sky Knight," the Dark Ace said, pointing out the obvious._

_Aerrow could not find the strength to get up and fight, for his limbs were sore and aching from crashing, and he had been separated from his energy blades. The citizens of Atmosia were standing nearby, watching helplessly._

_"Time to die," the Dark Ace said, raising his blade._

_Suddenly, a black-hooded figure came out of nowhere and kicked the Dark Ace in the gut, sending him flying back._

_"Not on my watch," the figure said. Little did anyone know, the figure was actually Kara._

_"Who are you?" the Dark Ace growled._

_She drew her twin lightning blades out and activated them, the blades giving off a white glow. Her blades were using two rare white striker crystals. "The Guardian of Atmos," she claimed, positioning herself defensively and offensively between the Dark Ace and Aerrow, "You've no right to be here."_

_"On the contrary, Master Cyclonis wants the Aurora Stone," the Dark Ace responded._

_Suddenly, three Talons drove over to him from the beacon tower, giving him the powerful crystal. The citizens gasped._

_"Your own sworn protector turns on you, and Atmos sends _children_," he yelled, pointing at Aerrow, "instead of Sky Knights?! How pathetic."_

_"You are mistaken, Dark Ace," Kara said, drawing down her hood, "I am a Sky Knight."_

_His blood red eyes narrowed. "You!" he hissed, "So you've been here the whole time! I've heard about you, girl. The new female Sky Knight who's been chosen as Atmos' guardian. I believe we've met before on certain terms."_

_"What are you talking about?" Kara hissed back, eyes narrowing._

_"Forget it," he said, then looked at Aerrow, "Consider yourself lucky, Sky Knight. I'll allow you a lifetime to savour your defeat."_

_With that said, the Dark Ace departed on his Switchblade._

_"He's getting away!" a Council elder yelled._

_Kara ignored that, deactivated her blades and put them away, then turned to Aerrow. "You okay?" she implored._

_Junko and Finn landed and ran over to him, glaring at Kara while they helped him up._

_"You okay, Aerrow?" Junko asked._

_Aerrow grunted and asked, "where are the others?"_

_As if they heard, Piper, Stork, and Radarr descended to the ground on Piper's Heliscooter, and Radarr ran and hugged Aerrow._

_"Aerrow! Are you okay?" Piper demanded._

_"I'm fine. It's thanks to _her_ I'm still alive," he responded, motioning to Kara._

__

"Thank you for saving him," Piper thanked gratefully.

Kara shook her head in reply.

The Council elder walked over to her. "Kara! They're getting away! You've got to do something!" he exclaimed, surprised at her calmness.

Her arms were crossed as she watched the skies. She shook her head. "Sure, I'll infiltrate Cyclonia, but this isn't my battle," she replied, looking at the Storm Hawks with a mischievous smile, "This isn't my title to redeem, nor my plan of action."

"What?!" the elder exclaimed, outraged.

Kara seemed as cool and calm as ever. "Believe me, I know what I'm doing," she said, walking over to the Storm Hawks and more specifically, Aerrow. She placed a hand on his shoulder, healing him by forcing all of his aches and pains away.

"Don't let me down, Sky Knight. I wish you and the Storm Hawks the best of luck, and I'll keep an eye out for you guys, assisting when necessary. But I trust you all can do this," Kara announced quietly, only meant for the squadron's ears, "Good luck, Storm Hawks."

After that, Kara turned around, walked away, transformed herself into a sky hawk, and flew out of sight.

The elder sighed, "I believe in her decisions. We'll alert the other squadrons, and hopefully things will turn in our favour." He turned to Aerrow and the others, "the fate of Atmos rests in that crystal."

"We're going to Cyclonia to get it back," Aerrow declared determinedly.

"We are?!" the Storm Hawks chimed.

He nodded.

_"We're doomed," Stork muttered._

"But it turned out they weren't doomed after all," Adrian said, "they succeeded in their mission, kinda."

"Yeah," Aerrow agreed, "I had to destroy the Aurora Stone, but for a good reason. That was also the day we met Starling, the Sky Knight of the Interceptors."

"During all this," Adrian said, "I was on Terra Saharr, meeting an old friend. Kara came to tell me about it after she saw that Aerrow successfully destroyed the Aurora Stone."

Lorali smiled. "That's so cool," she said, turning to Aerrow, "How did it feel being rescued by Lady Kara?"

Aerrow laughed. "I felt so grateful to her for saving my life, astounded that she managed to take the Dark Ace by total surprise, stupid that I let the Dark Ace defeat me, and worried about the others, who were still airborne at the time," he replied honestly.

"When did you actually join the Storm Hawks?" she asked Kara.

"A few weeks ago, on Terra Neon. Stork was being 'kidnapped', and Adrian and I helped them out," Kara replied, smoothing a few wrinkles on her dark blue dress.

"But, we'll save that story for a different time," Finn said.

Lorali put the Aurora Stone into the crystal safe secured against a table.

"Now, Piper, you can stay here for a while if you wish while I take the others around the place," Kara offered.

"Of course!" Piper squealed joyfully.

With that said, they left, leaving Piper and Lorali to their crystals.

As they continued, they dropped Stork at the Inventing Lab, Junko in the kitchen, and Finn at the Tanning Salon. Even Radarr decided to stay at the Massaging Room. Now, only Kara, Aerrow, and Adrian were left.

"So, anywhere specific you guys want to go?" Kara questioned them as she sat on a stone bench in the floral-scented courtyard.

"Nowhere in particular," Adrian replied, "Aerrow?"

"Nope," the red-head agreed.

Kara smiled. "Then do I have a place for the both of you!" she exclaimed cheerfully, standing up.

She took them and dragged them deeper into the courtyard, navigating past trees, flowers, shrubs, and bushes.

Suddenly, she stopped in front of wooden door and placed her palm on it, and it opened.

"I thought you magic powers were gone!" Aerrow claimed.

"They are. I didn't need to use magic for this, I only needed to think my password," she retorted.

They walked in and suddenly felt as if they were in a whole new place.

Adrian and Aerrow were deeply entranced by the long, dark green field of grass, the glittering blue of a large lake, the calm splashes of a waterfall, the various flowers around some areas of grass, a rainbow appearing next to the waterfall due to the refraction of light. Warm sunlight beamed down onto their faces. When they looked back, the door had disappeared, and they only saw now a large, light forest of trees.

"W-Where are we?" Aerrow implored, dazzled.

"This…" Kara announced, spinning in light circles, "is my own personal sanctuary."

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**Well... I hope you liked this chapter (even though it was kinda short), but anyways, please R&R. **

**Thanks to Billy-008 for noticing the typo. Apparantly a whole section was cut out. Thanks for seeing that!**


	9. Sanctuary

**Well... here's the next chapter! Please R&R! Much appreciated!**

**Disclaimer: Storm Hawks belongs to Nerd Corps and Ace Fipke.**

**Claimer: All OC's, Terra Foresta and idea of this story (with the exception of flashbacks within chapters).**

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"It's so beautiful," Adrian commented, "almost like its from a dream."

"It's real all right," Kara stated, "I come here when I need to relax, and when I need to think, calm down, or just be me."

"How did you find this place?" Aerrow asked.

She gave an easy shrug. "Just found it, I guess." She said, "I decided to keep it a secret from the rest of Atmos, so that it would remain undisturbed."

"Why are you showing us this place if its suppose to be a secret?" Adrian implored.

"_Because_ you guys are my friends, and fellow Sky Knights," she replied, "and since I know a Sky Knight's duty may be tough at times, I figured there should be a time and place when and where they can relax, and just be themselves."

"It seems so… peaceful and… calming, just standing here," Adrian said, inhaling deeply.

"Is it always like this?" Aerrow questioned Kara.

She nodded. "The only other person who've I've ever told about this place was Chase, and now you two know as well. I plan to tell the rest of the Storm Hawks eventually, and we can come here at any time and any place."

A deer pranced up to her from the forest, and Kara gently stroked it's head. "You'll find a lot of wild animals here. But they're all friendly and kind. The truth is, there's a special shield around the doors so that only people with pure or good hearts can come here. And this place is prosperous with food and clean water, so the animals here are very healthy and are generous."

As she said this, two does pranced up to Adrian and Aerrow, and dropped an apple into their hands.

"Thank you," they said simultaneously, patting them gently.

"See?" Kara pointed out, smiling as a doe came up to her, an apple in its mouth, dropping it into her outstretched hand. She rubbed its head in thanks and the doe nuzzled into her.

Adrian watched her with loving eyes. Over the years (and months) of knowing Kara, he had grown to love those luminous dark brown eyes, that long black hair, that kind heart, and those soft lips he wished to caress with his own. He had fallen deeply in love with her, and he wished her with all his heart to be his. Little did he know, she felt the same way about him.

But they were both oblivious to the fact that Finn has tried to set them up before. As he had for Aerrow and Piper.

The three Sky Knights laid themselves down on the cool grass, closing their eyes and purely relaxing.

"Comforting, no?" Kara questioned, eyes still closed.

The two beside her didn't respond as they began to doze off. Kara opened her eyes and looked at them, at how peaceful they looked. She gave a light shrug and closed her eyes once more, calmly just focusing on the sound of her breathing while listening to the calm song of her heart.

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About an hour and a half later, Aerrow and Adrian were jolted awake by someone squealing. They snapped up and looked towards Kara. A small white rabbit had hopped onto Kara while she was dozing and began to lick her face, making her squeal because it tickled her.

She began to rise, and the bunny hopped off her, and she looked at the relieved Adrian and Aerrow.

"Oops. Sorry if I woke you up, guys. It's because of _this_," she patted the bunny on the head, "little guy that I squealed."

"It's okay, Kara," Adrian yawned, "that nap was relaxing."

Aerrow stretched his arms and legs and got onto his feet. "Are you guys ready to go back to the castle?" he asked.

Both Adrian and Kara got up, brushing dust and grass off themselves, and they nodded.

"I'll lead the way," Kara said, taking them to one side of the waterfall. On the side of it stood a wooden door. She opened it and they all walked in. They suddenly appeared back in the floral courtyard.

"We're back, wait, we're back?" Adrian stated the obvious quite puzzled.

"Do I _need_ to say why?" Kara asked, annoyed.

Both he and Aerrow shook their heads.

"Excellent. Now, I think the others should be back at their quarters, so let's go back," she announced, leading the way back to their corridors of rooms.

To their surprise, Finn, Junko, Radarr, and Stork were standing outside of Piper's door.

"Hey guys, what are you doing outside Piper's door?" Aerrow asked curiously.

"Piper was dragged into her room by some maids, trying to get her to choose a dress for the ritual," Finn replied.

"I think the maids were infected with mindworms," Stork commented.

"Uh… Stork? You think _everyone_ is infected with mindworms," Adrian said.

"Uh… right…" Stork mumbled.

Suddenly, Piper's door opened, and Piper stood there in a long, midnight-blue dress that reached the floor. Her back was slightly exposed, and the sleeves were long and big. An orange bow was tied around her waist and she wore her diamond crystal necklace. Her hair was drawn up into a high ponytail, and she looked a bit irritated.

"Someone kill me now…" she muttered quietly.

"Wow," Finn said, "is that _really_ you, Piper?"

She glared at him. "Of course it is!" she hissed.

"Yep, that's Piper all right," Stork stated.

Aerrow gaped at her. He never realized that she looked so amazing in that dress.

"It's so pretty!" Kara exclaimed.

"And cute!" Junko added.

Adrian gently elbowed Aerrow in the ribs. "You're gaping, Aerrow. Just go and tell her you think she looks beautiful and that you love her," he told the redhead.

Aerrow blinked and closed his mouth. "No way. And how'd you know I liked Piper that way?"

He smiled. "It was kinda obvious, and Kara told me. She told me that you didn't tell her that, but she could a) see it in your eyes, b) tell by how you act around Piper, and c) sense your emotions when Piper's nearby, in trouble, and or in the room," Adrian explained," I'm lucky that she hasn't figured out that I love her yet."

Adrian had admitted to Aerrow that he had fallen in love with Kara during some time on the Condor earlier that week. Aerrow had promised to keep it a secret, but he never told Adrian he had grown to love Piper as more than just a friend.

Kara looked at them oddly. "What are you guys whispering about?" she asked quietly.

"N-Nothing," they lied.

She shrugged it off as three maids walked out of Piper's room. They walked towards Kara, pulling her to her room.

"Milady," one of the maids said," it's time to get you ready for the ritual."

Kara groaned, rolling her eyes. "Very well then," she sighed, following them into her room, which they proceeded to close.

"Wow, Piper, you look amazing," Aerrow commented.

She blushed, though it couldn't be seen against her dark chocolate skin. "Thanks, Aerrow," she replied.

Finn stated at her with a raised eyebrow. "Are you sure you're Piper?" he asked.

"FINN!" she yelled angrily.

Junko started to laugh. "Don't worry, buddy, that's Piper all right," he answered.

"So…" Adrian began," what are we going to do now until Kara comes out?"

Finn pressed his ear against Kara's door, listening. Then he grinned. "Don't worry, she'll be out soon," he said, "in about 10 to 15 minutes."

The rest of the Storm Hawks looked at him with a 'how-would-you-know?' expression.

"Trust me," he reassured, "I promise that I'm not crazy or insane, and that I'm just making this up."

As Finn promised, Kara walked out of her room 15 minutes later, a flush of embarrassment overcoming her face.

The maids had dressed in her in an odd sort of clothes. A bit more traditional than Kara's style.

It was a sleeveless dark blue shirt, which had a somewhat low V-cut neckline, revealing her necklace, and was open right above her slim belly, the shirt skimming diagonally to her sides. Semi-frilly white silk laced the edges of the shirt. The small of her back was open, and revealed the soft curves of her spine. She had a long, navy blue skirt that reached her ankles, and there was a slit on the right side of the skirt that ended at her mid-thigh, show off a bit of her legs. Clear light-blue glass slippers cradled her bare feet, and her hair was ironed into long waves that trailed down her shoulders. In her right hand she held a long staff, a dream-catcher type shape on the top end, made by twisted and welded metal bands.

The Storm Hawks were speechless. They were gaping in utter astonishment.

Kara sighed as the maids came out to admire their handiwork. "Tell me, do I really look _that_ bad?" she asked her squadron.

"You look… well, like an angel that descended to us from above the Stratosphere," Adrian commented.

"Except that you're wearing blue," Finn added.

"Wow," Piper said, her eyes wide, "you look _sooo_ good in that. It's so cute!"

"It looks adorable!" Junko exclaimed.

Radarr scrambled over to Kara and climbed onto her shoulder, hugging her neck.

"It seems Radarr likes it too," Aerrow commented, laughing," you look absolutely stunning!"

She chuckled, "Thanks Aerrow, thanks Radarr."

"Are you guys ready to go?" Piper asked.

Radarr hopped over back to Aerrow and Kara twirled her staff, stamping the end on the ground.

"Ready!" she exclaimed cheerfully.

"Let's get going!" Finn shouted excitedly.

They were driven there by a soldier, who returned to the castle after dropping them off in the middle of the dark, green forest.

"Right this way guys," Kara directed, leading them into a dark-ish clearing, fireflies lighting the dim place.

Dozens of people stood around a huge lake. A few of the people in the crowd were some castle guards.

"Kara!" A male voice gasped.

They all turned towards the voice and saw a young man no older than eighteen with a bushy mop of dark, nearly black, brown hair. His bright blue eyes lit up as her ran towards them, wearing a light brown sleeveless tunic over a dark blue shirt. He had smooth black slacks and high cheekbones. He was slightly medium built, and taller than any of the Storm Hawks.

"Chase!" Kara exclaimed, running and jumping into his outstretched arms, making Adrian feel a little jealous, "It's been so long since I've seen you!"

"I know! You've grown taller since last time!" he replied, hugging her close. Then he let her go, placing his hands on his hips. "So, I've been told you've become a big-time, hot-shot Sky Knight now,"

She punched him lightly in the shoulder. "Hey!" she scolded, turning to her squadron, "Piper, guys, this is my friend and old-time mentor, Chase. Chase, this is the squadron that I've joined, the Storm Hawks. This is Adrian, Piper, Finn, Junko, Stork, Radarr, and our leader, Aerrow," she introduced.

"Hey, hello," they greeted simultaneously.

"So… this is the infamous Storm Hawks squadron," Chase joked, his hands on his hips, "the new one, anyways."

"That's us!" Finn exclaimed, doing his trademark 'Chica-cha' with his fingers.

"It's nice to finally meet you guys," he said.

"So… is everything ready?" Kara asked him.

Chase nodded. "A perimeter has been set, and the guards are on high alert. You _do_ remember that while the ritual is taking place, Terra Foresta will no longer be cloaked and we'll be seen by anyone passing by," he reminded.

"Yeah, I know," she replied easily.

Queen Arra walked over to them from the crowd of people. She dipped her head in greeted. "Lord Chase, Kara, Storm Hawks," she acknowledged.

They bowed and curtseyed. "Queen Arra," they responded.

Arra turned to Kara. "Are you ready, Kara?" she asked.

Without hesitation, she responded, "I am," and she began to walk towards the lake, staff in hand.

Kara stopped at the edge of the lake, gazing at her reflection, before stepping onto the surface of the Lake of Purity. Instantly, her glass slippers turned into dust and blew away, and a pure white aura faded into existence around her. The citizens gasped. Kara was indeed the 'chosen one' of Terra Foresta!

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**Please R&R!!!!**

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	10. Unexpected Guests

**Okay, so here's the next, more or less exciting chapter to _the Storm Hawks Eight_. Hope you likey! Please R&R!**

**Disclaimer: Storm Hawks belongs to Ace Fipke.**

**Claimer: Everything else. lol.**

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Chapter Ten: Unexpected Guests

"So it's true," Arra whispered, "the chosen one has finally revealed herself."

"About time too," Chase muttered half-jokingly, "Who knew she was with us the whole time?"

With closed eyes, Kara slowly walked on the Lake of Purity's surface and a pure white aura surrounded her. When she reached the centre, she stopped, putting her bare feet together and holding her staff to the side at an angle. Her eyes snapped open, and the light exploded, causing a huge ripple of the water. She began to dance, twirling her staff and her feet. Gracefully, she danced upon the lake, and white balls of light began to float from the lake.

"The souls trapped within the lake," Piper whispered, "they're free now, thanks to Kara."

"I don't know why, but at the same time this ritual is both happy and sad," Aerrow admitted.

"That's probably because you're thinking too much," Finn commented quietly.

"Well… I don't blame him," Piper said, "Kara's dance is setting those trapped souls free, so you feel happy. But then you realize that those souls will be leaving Atmos forever to move on to the next life, so you feel sad."

"She's right," Chase agreed, "A lot of the souls trapped are friends and family to the Forestians, so they may feel sadness inside. But they are happy that Kara is letting them go rest in peace."

Kara's dance eventually came to a close, ending with a thump of the staff against the water's surface in front of her. Then, the staff soon faded away with the wind.

All around her, people began to cheer. Kara had successfully performed the sacred ritual and released the souls within the Lake of Purity. The Storm Hawks, Arra and Chase also cheer with them, happiness and joy dancing in their eyes. Well, maybe except for Stork, who just seemed satisfied. But their happiness was short-lived.

All of a sudden, an arrow came flying out of nowhere and stuck Kara just below her ribcage. She began to fall backwards, the light fading from her eyes as they closed.

"Kara!" Adrian screamed.

Suddenly, an engine-less Cyclonian skimmer came flying from above them and landing in the lake, right on top of Kara, condemning them both into the cold water.

Immediately, Chase dived into the water after her. Adrian was about to do the same, but was stopped by Aerrow.

"Hold on!" he ordered, his leader instincts kicking in, "We need to know what we're up against. Chase is already going after her, so she'll be well taken care of."

Without warning, a familiar violin theme played, and the Storm Hawks instantly knew it was Ravess.

The dark pinky-red haired woman descended with a group of Talons of their Switchblades, a wicked grin on her face with her bow in hand.

"Ravess!" Aerrow yelled as Radarr growled.

"How could you?!" Junko cried, "You shot Kara! She was defenseless!"

Ravess grinned. "She was similar to all of you. She was a pesky Sky Knight that needed to be taught a lesson," she replied, "good riddance. Talons! Attack!" Then she and her Talons began their attack on the even _more_ defenseless citizens.

"Storm Hawks!" Aerrow commanded, "Get those people to safety and try to take down Ravess and her Talons!"

Suddenly, Chase burst from the water's surface, empty-handed and coughing. "Adrian! Aerrow!" he yelled between coughs, "I need your help! Kara's trapped underneath the skimmer! She's drowning!"

Immediately, Aerrow and Adrian dived into the water as Chase submerged himself under again. They swam to the very bottom, where they saw that Kara's lower body was trapped underneath the broken skimmer, the arrow still in her body. Blood merged and disappeared with the water around it, and her body was motionless, her eyes closed.

Aerrow and Chase quickly swam to the opposite side of the skimmer and grabbed hold, and Adrian did the same on Kara's side. Aerrow and Chase pulled hard while Adrian pushed. After a few desperate moments of trying, the skimmer moved! When it had been pushed far enough, Adrian pulled Kara's body out and held her in his arms. They all swam to the surface and when they broke through, the Cyclonians had gone and the three boys gasped for sweet, fresh air.

"Kara!" Finn, Junko, Piper, and Arra cried.

Adrian towed her motionless body to shore, and as the guys pushed themselves up and out, Adrian lifted Kara out of the water and laid her down on the grass. He placed his ear first to her chest, then just above her mouth.

"She's not breathing!" Piper cried.

Adrian pumped down on her chest, trying to forced the water out, ignoring the arrow and her wound at the time. He could hear a few of her ribs crack.

_Sorry Kara, I'll heal them after I save you, _He thought.

He also gave her mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and finally Kara choked out water. Her breathing became laboured because of the wound.

"Get the medics here!" Arra yelled.

Adrian pushed his hands up around the wound, trying to send as much of his healing power into her as possible.

"Heal," he whispered, choking back tears that stung his eyes.

Suddenly, the paramedics ran over and placed Kara's body on a stretcher, no longer allowing Adrian to heal her. Then they drove off towards the castle.

"We've gotta hurry!" Junko exclaimed.

"What happened to Ravess and her Talons?" Aerrow asked Piper.

"For some reason, after firing a few shots, they left," she replied.

Adrian looked worried. "We'll go after her later. Right now, Kara needs up. We've got to support her."

Arra's eyes were slightly sad. "She's being taken back to the castle, where the healers will deal with her," she explained.

Chase placed a reassuring hand on Adrian's shoulder and squeezed lightly. "She'll be okay in the end, I just know it," he reassured.

Adrian nodded wordlessly, eyes still dim.

Finn walked over to him, as did Piper.

"Dude, don't worry. Kara will be _fine_!" Finn agreed, forcing false hope into his voice.

"Yeah, she can take care of herself," Piper stated, "the arrow shouldn't be in her _too_ deep."

With that said, they were hurriedly driven back to the castle.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

When they arrived, the castle seemed to be in chaos. Maids and servants were rushing hurriedly throughout the place. Arra took them to where Kara would be, in one of the infirmary rooms.

"What's her status report?" Chase demanded of a maid that went out of her room.

"She's weak, a fever is overcoming her, the arrow is too close to a major artery to remove without her bleeding to death, she's lost a large amount of blood, her breathing is laboured, and she's in critical condition," the maid listed quickly, "now excuse me, Milord, I must fetch some medicine."

"K-Kara…" Adrian choked.

Aerrow looked at Arra and Chase. "Isn't there _anything_ we can do to help?" he begged for both his and his squadron's sake.

They shook their heads sadly.

Maids continually went in and out of the room, much to the Storm Hawks, Arra, and Chase's concern.

A few minutes later, which felt like hours, a doctor came out with blood on her gloved hands.

"I'm sorry," she told them, "but she's not going to make it."

Tears came to their eyes, and it took all of Piper's willpower to keep her knees from collapsing.

"Isn't there _anything_ you can do?!" Finn pleaded.

The doctor shook her head. "There is no way to pull the arrow out without damaging her arteries. She could bleed to death in a matter of seconds," she explained sadly.

"I'll do it," Adrian stated boldly, "I'll heal her. I have to."

"B-But Adrian," Piper began.

"No," he retorted sternly," I _have_ to save her. I love her with all my heart."

Aerrow looked at his fellow Sky Knight with conflicting, understanding eyes. "I'll help you in any way I can. Piper, you and the others will stay out here," he ordered, and Radarr moved over near Piper, his wide yellow eyes deeply concerned.

Arra looked at Adrian with pained eyes. "Are you sure about this?" she asked.

He answered without hesitation. " Yes." His dark eyes were determined and unflinching. "If I can stabilize her until 10 AM tomorrow morning, she'll make it."

"Her powers would return by then," Chase figured, "and so she could finish the healing herself."

"How did you know?" Stork implored suspiciously.

"Lorali told me," he answered.

Adrian took a deep breath then looked at his commanding officer. "Let's go," he said.

Then both he and Aerrow walked through that door, where they both suddenly wished they hadn't, for the sight in front of them deemed near impossible.

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**Please R&R! Thanks!**


	11. Saving Her

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Well... sorry I haven't updated this in a while. Also, I've changed the story from what it was originally suppose to be due to... well... lots of things. So now... this becomes a tragedy.

**Please R&R!**

**Disclaimer: Storm Hawks (c) Nerd Corps and Ace Fipke**

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Chapter Eleven: Saving Her

Kara was still wearing her outfit as she lay in a bed lined with white sheets, her eyes closed, beads of sweat rolling down her forehead.

"Kara…" Adrian choked, trying not to pay attention to her blood that stank the air.

The arrow was still protruding from her body, and a pool of blood around the wound. Apparently a few now-bloodied wads of cloth were placed around and near the wound, and two nurses stood nearby in case they were needed by the two boys.

Aerrow seemed shocked to see his friend in such a state. He could never have imagined that such a normally strong-willed person suddenly be transformed into someone so weak and needed assistance. But then again, these were under different circumstances.

Adrian briefly shuddered before taking charge, putting on a pair of latex gloves, letting his medical side of him take over. "Okay, Aerrow, I'm going to need you to hold onto the shaft of that arrow and pull it out when I tell you to. Once after you do, stay back," he instructed, "we have no time to lose."

The redhead gave a single nod and they stood beside Kara's body. Aerrow held on to the slim weapon.

"Now!" Adrian directed, and Aerrow pulled quickly and swiftly, drawing blood from Kara.

Immediately, as Aerrow stepped back, Adrian pressed his hands against the now-exposed wound. He summoned every inch of his healing power from his body and forced it into hers. A pale blue aura engulfed them both, growing larger and brighter by the second.

_Come on, Kara, _Adrian thought, _Don't give up on me, I beg of you. You have no idea how much I love you._

Aerrow and the nurses were in utter shock. They had never seen such powerful healing magic.

"I never thought that it would be true when I read that love strengthens your natural abilities more," a nurse murmured, dazzled by the bright aura.

"Apparently it _was_ true," the other nurse replied.

After 5 minutes had past, Adrian collapsed back onto the ground, the aura vanishing.

"Adrian! You okay there?" Aerrow implored, concerned.

"I'm fine. Just tired," he replied, then let his gaze settle on Kara, "I've managed to seal the wound on the outside and the major internal damages, so she'll be able to heal in the morning without any complications."

"So she'll be alright then?" the redhead asked eagerly, hoping to give the rest of his team some good news.

Adrian nodded, standing back up and removing his bloodied gloves, discarding them in the trash can. The maids had hurriedly rushed to Kara's side and checked her pulse, wrapping bandages over the former wound, which now only left a scar.

"Her heartbeat is getting stronger!" One of them exclaimed.

The other maid rushed out and told the rest of the squadron the good news. Cheering could be heard from the other side of the door.

Radarr, Piper, Finn, Junko, Stork, Chase, and Arra burst into the rather large room. Aerrow discarded the arrow and joined them. Radarr scampered up onto Aerrow's shoulder.

"When will she wake up?" Finn questioned excitedly.

"Finn!" Piper scolded, "She was _just_ healed, it could take a while for her to awake."

"Hey," a weak, familiar voice greeted, "What did I miss?"

They looked at Kara and saw her half-opened brown eyes gazing up at them.

"Kara!" They all gasped.

"For once, Piper. You're wrong," Finn told her gleefully.

She glared at him, but dismissed it by returning her attention to Kara.

"Kara! You're awake!" Chase exclaimed happily.

"Thank the Atmos," Arra sighed in relied.

Adrian sat on her bedside, leaning in to kiss her still-warm forehead. "We thought we lost you," he whispered, gazing into her eyes, "I love you."

She gazed back into his eyes, trying not to get lost in those dark hazel orbs. "I love you too," she whispered back.

Ever so gently, he placed a hand on the side of her face, and pressed his lips gently against hers, closing his eyes in the process.

A chorus of "aww"s filled the room, and when they pulled apart, Junko said, "See? You two _do_ look good together."

They laughed, except for Kara, who was still weak. She just smiled at them.

"What time is it right now?" She asked after they finished laughing.

"It's about 7, Milady," a maid replied who was standing by the door.

"Oh my," Kara said, "You should all get to dinner now. I will have a warm vegetable broth sent up later after I rest. I think I still may have a fever."

Adrian placed a hand on her forehead. "Yes you do," he agreed.

Radarr jumped onto her bed and nuzzled her cheek with a worried chirp.

"Don't worry, Radarr, it's only a fever," she reassured, "Now go. I don't want to spoil your dinners."

"We'll come back later to check up on you," Piper said.

Kara gave a weak nod, then with a sigh, she closed her eyes, drifting into a calming sleep.

They all quietly creeped out of the room and closed the door.

"What a relief," Finn sighed.

"Now, let's not dawdle. We'd better go to dinner now before she has our tails later for not listening to her," Aerrow announced, "I'm not so sure about getting her angry while she's still bedridden for the time being."

"Yeah, she needs to recover," Chase agreed.

"Now that's a thought," Finn said, thinking hard, "A sick guardian throwing a temper while she's still in bed."

Arra looked at one of the guards guarding Kara's room. "Don't hesitate to alert us if her condition changes, we'll be in the Dining Hall," she advised them. Then she turned to the others. "Come on, let's go," she said, leading the way.

"I'm just glad she was shown as a negative for mindworms," Stork muttered, "especially the contagious ones. But we should all still be tested just in case."

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**Please Review!**


	12. Hard to Say Goodbye

**Well... here's the conclusion to "The Storm Hawks Eight". I hope I didn't make things too tragic (probably not). Anyways, hope you enjoyed this story! I'm most likely not going to WRITE a sequel, but maybe just plan one out in case it should come up. lol, I already had one in plan anyways. Please R&R!**

**Disclaimer: Storm Hawks (c) Ace Fipke and Nerd Corps**

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Chapter Twelve: Hard to Say Goodbye

After a pleasing dinner, with the exception of Stork, who returned to his room to test and analyze the floral-scented mindworm repellents that Kara bought for him, the Storm Hawks were more relaxed. With the fact that Kara had survived, and the delicious dinner, relaxation and satisfaction spread through them all.

Now they were heading back towards Kara's temporary room.

"How is she?" Arra asked the guards.

"Her fever is rising a fair bit," a guard said, "We fear she may be ill."

"And you didn't alert us, _why_?" Chase demanded angrily.

"Well… a boy who called himself "the Finnster" came up to us. He, being the great Domo, ordered us to 'take a break and relax'. He told us not to disturb you while during dinner." The guards explained, "We apologize for not alerting you though."

They all looked at Finn with angry "I'm-about-to-kill-you" expression on their faces.

"Finn…" Aerrow began.

"What?! Hey, don't look at me!" Finn said oh-not-so-innocently, "I'm not their great Gomo!"

"Domo!" Stork corrected.

"Whatever!" he snapped, "Same diff."

"Finn…" Piper growled, "We all know _you're_ the Domo!"

"And no one else calls themselves 'the Finnster' except for _you_!" Junko added.

"Ugh," Aerrow groaned, turning back to the guards, "How is she now?"

"Not doing very well, sir," the guard replied.

Suddenly, a nurse came out of the room and turned her attention to Adrian. "Milord, we need your assistance," she told him.

The medic turned to his squadron. "Guys, hey, get to bed. I can take care of her," he told them.

"But-" Arra began.

"No," he cut off, "there still may be a chance that the Cyclonians may attack tomorrow, and you guys will need your strength. I'll be fine." He looked at his commanding officer straight in the eyes and gave a brief nod.

Aerrow sighed, knowing he wouldn't be able to change the Sky Knight's mind. "Come on guys," he ordered.

They silently followed Aerrow back to their corridor and then all went into their respective rooms.

Back in the infirmary room, Adrian sat down by Kara's side and dabbed at her forehead with a cold, wet towel.

"Hey… how are you feeling?" he asked her quietly.

She coughed, "Not very well." She cleared her throat and stared him directly in the eyes. "I-I think… I'm dying… Adrian…"

"What?" he asked, forcing a chuckle, "Why do you say that?"

"The arrow," she retorted, "It was poisoned…"

He shook his head. "No… it can't be… I-I healed you…" he reassured, mostly to himself.

Kara took his hand tightly in hers, focusing on her aura. "See, Adrian? Can't you see how I'm weakening? There was poison in the arrow, I just know it. Ravess isn't that stupid just to shoot me blindly for no reason," she told him quietly.

Before he could reason otherwise, she closed her eyes and mentally analzyed the wound. "She had the chance to kill me when she could, but instead she only chose to wound me. They want me to suffer, Adrian. Suffer before I die," she explained, "But… I have to admit, I'm not suffering much. Only the sadness that I'm staying in bed." She looked outside to the balcony and into the skies. "And never have the chance to fly again."

He gripped her hand tightly. "I'm not going to let you die, Kara," he promised.

Suddenly, there was a rapping on the door.

"C-Come in!" he called hesitantly.

The door opened, and in came Aerrow and Piper, worry dancing in their eyes.

"Hey…" they greeted quietly.

"Hi," Adrian replied, "I thought I told you guys to go to bed."

"We couldn't go to bed knowing our friend was hurt," Piper retorted.

They came in and stood by Kara's bedside.

"How're feeling?" Aerrow inquired the girl in bed.

"Aerrow, Piper…" Kara began quietly, "I'm not going to make it."

Piper sat on the other side of the bed. "Kara, what are you talking about? You're going to make it. You've got to," she replied.

"I-I can't…" she muttered, "The poison on the arrow is too strong. There's no time to find an antidote." Then she looked up at the clock hanging on the wall. "I only have a few minutes left."

"No!" Adrian cried, tears beginning to spring from his eyes, "You can't die!"

Aerrow looked at her with sad emerald eyes. "He's right, Kara. We need you here with us."

"Don't worry," she whispered, "I can still visit you through other means. I will be able to visit all of you through dreams, and in my hawk form. But I can no longer stay with the Storm Hawks. Well… there is the possibility of attempting to bring me back from the dead."

"But you can't leave us!" Piper exclaimed, "We all still need you!"

She smiled softly, then looked at Aerrow. "Aerrow, come here. There is something I need to give you," she ordered.

Piper got up and the redheaded Sky Knight took her place by Kara's side. Kara reached up and gently undid her necklace. She held it by the silver chain and dropped it into his hands.

"The duty of saving Atmos as it's rightful guardian, now falls to you," she told him, "I have faith in you, Aerrow."

He shook his head, tears forming at the corner of his green eyes. "No, I can't. It belongs to you," he said.

"It has been said that if the guardian cannot fulfil her duty, another will be chosen. But as the guardian lay dying, she may choose her successor. And I choose you, Aerrow," she explained, turning to Piper with her hand outstretched, "To you, Piper, I give you all my knowledge of crystal handling and experimenting. I also give to you my sanity, so that you can put up with all the crap Finn's probably going to throw at you for the next few years."

An orange light surrounded Kara's hand and flew into Piper. The navigator chuckled quietly about that joke with Finn, but her heart was quietly breaking as she felt her friend's life fading away.

Kara then turned to Adrian, who had tears streaming down his cheeks. "And to you, my love, I give up all my healing powers, so you can help others in need. I also give both you and Aerrow my strength, so that you can lead the Storm Hawks into victory with your bravery."

A blue stream of healing light flowed from Kara's arm and into Adrian. Gently, he leaned down and kissed her softly.

"I love you," he whispered, "Don't ever forget that."

"I-I love you too…" she mumbled, her eyelids drooping.

"I swear to you, Kara," Aerrow choked, his voice cracking with emotion as he clenched her necklace tightly in his fist, "Ravess and Cyclonia will pay for this."

"We're all going to miss you," Piper whispered, tears running down her face, "Life on the Condor is never going to be the same without you."

"Goodbye, all of you, and thanks for everything you've ever done for me," she whispered.

"I love you so much, Kara…" Adrian choked, kissing her one last time before the last breath left her body and she went still.

Almost instantaneously they all could feel her presence disappear and sobs erupted from the room. Somehow, both Chase and Arra sensed that something was wrong and instantly Chase ran towards Kara's infirmary room while Arra went up to the Prophet's Tower.

"No…" Arra trailed off as she found the copy of the prophecy of the Storm Hawks. On it there was a note. It read, 'false prophecy. The guardian will die."

Chase stopped dead in his tracks once he reached the door.

"No…" he whispered in disbelief, "No, it can't be."

He burst into the room to find Aerrow holding Piper against his chest, both of them sobbing. He turned to the bed to see Adrian holding Kara in his arms, sobbing into her shoulder as her head hung limply, her eyes closed.

"No… No! NO!" Chase yelled in disbelief, "You can't be dead!"

Suddenly, a guard ran up to Chase as he fell to his knees, tears leaking from his eyes.

"Milord, what's wrong?" the guard asked.

"G-Go alert everyone on Foresta. The guardian has fallen. She's dead," he sobbed.

The guard was taken aback, and instantly ran through the corridors, yelling that the guardian was dead.

Chase forced himself to walk into the room and sit upon Kara's bedside, staring into the lifeless face.

"Adrian, I'm sorry…" he whispered, "I knew how much you loved her, as she loved you. She was like a younger sister to me…"

Adrian forced himself to look into the eyes of the 18-year-old. "She will be greatly missed," he said, "But… I don't think there's anything we can do now."

Aerrow looked at them, still holding Piper against him as she continued to sob. "All we can do now is take down the Cyclonian Empire. It was her mission, in which she passed it onto us. All the while we will try to find some way to bring her back," he announced, "I think it's time that the Storm Hawks leave Foresta, and we're going to take Kara with us. If and when she is resurrected, you will all be the first to know."

Chase bowed his head in acknowledgement. "Please, just wait for the dawn to leave. There are many of us Forestians who would wish to say our final goodbyes to her," he requested.

Aerrow dipped his head gravely, then escorted Piper out of the door. "Come on, Piper. It'll be alright. We'll find a way to bring her back," he soothed with a heavy heart.

Adrian gently kissed Kara's still-warm lips before setting her back down on the bed. Then he took a glance at her before forcing himself to leave the room.

Chase closed his eyes and took her cold hand in his. "We're all going to miss you, Kara. Why did you have to leave us?" he whispered, tears continuing to flow freely down his face, "You were always like a little sister to me, and you always will be." He gently kissed her forehead and pulled a silver crystal ring out of his pocket. On it were the words 'best friend forever', and engraved inside was Kara's name.

"I was going to give this to you before you left Foresta. It belonged to my cousin. She told me to give this to my best friend, and that would be you," he said as he slipped the ring onto her left hand pointer finger. "Goodbye, my dear friend," he whispered. He stood up and walked out of the room, closing the door.

Outside, Piper was leaning against Aerrow for support as the last of her tears rolled down her cheeks. Junko was crying, huddling himself into a ball. Finn cried quietly, tears falling from his blue eyes.

"It's all my fault…" he sobbed, "If only I hadn't told the guards to take a break, maybe this wouldn't have happened."

"It's not your fault," Chase told him, "The poison had already been killing her from the start. There was no way you, or any of us for that matter, would have known. It's not your fault, Finn." The 18-year-old looked at the Storm Hawks' medic, who was crying silent tears as he felt his heart breaking with the death of his true love.

_I feel so alone... _Adrian thought with grief, _I could have saved her. If only I had known how. I miss her so much..._

Alas, sadness and grief tore at the Storm Hawks, but they knew they had to stay strong, for the sake of the Atmos, and for the sake of Kara, who gave her life trying to make Terra Foresta a better place.

Aerrow looked at the blue star pendant in his hand and clenched it tightly. _I made a promise to her,_ he thought, closing his emerald eyes, _and I intend to keep it._

THE END  
(For now…)

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**Please review! (I don't have very many reviews for this story so pleeease!)**


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